Reason to Live
by Wicked R
Summary: Charmed season 5, after Witches in Tights. Cole comes to the witches’ rescue and endangers himself.
1. Default Chapter

Title: Reason to Live  
Author: Wicked R  
Disclaimers: characters and the universe belongs to the WB.  
Genre: Angst/Romance, h/c, classical sickfic.

Rating: R.

Summary/Set: Charmed season 5, after Witches in Tights. Cole comes to the witches' rescue and endangers himself.

Pairing: L/Piper, C/Phoebe.

Thanks to Kati and my husband Tommy for their ideas on potions and clothing, and for their understanding when I ramble on about Cole.

The sisters watched with surprise as the beast, that appeared in the form of a wolf with the wings of a griffin and a serpent's tail, issued such hot fire from its mouth that it consumed one of the crystals that held him captured on the round carpet in the middle of the attic. Phoebe was ducking out the way of the perilous flame just in time. Piper tried to blow the demon up, although that didn't work when they first saw the creature either. Her magical abilities only made the beast shudder and retaliate a hundred times stronger. Its tail went fluttering towards her, collided into her side, making a gash that ripped through her brown shirt and deep into her flesh. The oldest of the current charmed ones cried out in anguish, writhing in a ball on the wooden floor, which was quickly becoming stained with her blood.

Leo called out her name, his voice laced with concern for his wounded wife, "you, bastard, how dare you hurt her," he attacked it throwing at it everything he could put his hands on, hoping he could make a path for himself to reach Piper and heal her while her two sisters fought off the demon.

Phoebe leaped into the air and managed to kick at the creature's head, "Paige! Try to get another crystal. We need to be able to say the spell!"

Her younger sister couldn't see another spare crystal anywhere, but she hoped there would be one in the attic. In that case, she called out commanding it into her hands, "crystal!"

The demon, understanding what Phoebe suggested, swung his tail towards Paige.

Just then, Cole shimmered in, immediately throwing a fire ball at the beast's tail. It didn't even slow it down, but it compromised its aim, and the tail turned over one of the bookcases at the wall instead. Cole followed it up with another fireball, Phoebe with another leap and kick. The crystal materialised in Paige's hand and she also managed to put it in place, momentarily trapping the beast again. Leo reached Piper and Phoebe picked up the piece of paper with the spell. With Piper still unconscious, they would have to hold hands, but the beast will not wait until they do. Deep down, she knew it will never work. She reached for Piper's hand, but Paige was further away. As the beast incinerated their spare crystal, Cole continued throwing fireballs at him. The beast ignored him, not being affected much and flared a massive energy ball towards Paige. Cole blocked its way, the energy ball hitting him in the stomach. He staggered backwards, wincing and grunting painfully.

Paige reached her sisters and started chanting. The beast, slightly alarmed this time, flamed out.

While Leo and Phoebe concentrated on Piper, Paige looked up at her ex brother in law who saved her from the energy ball. Being hit by a force like that would've killed her, but not the powerful demon Cole had become in the Wasteland. Nonetheless, Cole looked pale and he clutched his hand to his stomach, panting.

"Cole?" Paige started towards the half demon, "are you all right?"

Although he had lots of information on him he could tell them about the beast that just attacked them, he didn't want them to see him weak. They didn't want his help anyway. He could keep watch over them from a distance, as he always did. He hoped Leo would eventually deliver the right info to them, or their Book of Shadows will tell them what to do. He nodded towards Paige and was determined to shimmer out before he fainted in front of them from the pain or the exhaustion. Receiving an energy ball was like your energy being sapped away by another power, and although he was one of the most powerful demons to date now, Marchosias, because that was the name of the beast that attacked them as they called him in the underworld, had certainly picked up more powers in his five thousand years existence, than Cole ever could. He thought of shimmering and he imagined the way to his penthouse. That was how shimmering worked, by the mind's eye. He dematerialised, but felt very dizzy and missed the window, bumping into the attic's wall and re materialising at the other side of the room, followed by another crashing sound as he turned over a little table when he fell to the floor.

Paige scrunched her face in bewilderment. She knew very well, too well in fact, how uncomfortable it could be when she missed her aim when orbing, but she never saw Cole do anything even remotely similar. She walked over to him to find him struggling to sit up, his hand still clutching at his abdomen. "Let me see," she sat down on her heels next to him.

Cole groaned and looked up at Paige with cloudy eyes.

"Come on," Paige touched his hand and he loosened his grip to allow her to unbutton his scorched shirt at the bottom. "Eee…Leo?" She called when she heard her white lighter helping Piper up, "could you come here a minute? I can't see much other than some slight scorch marks here, but he seems to be in pretty bad shape."

"Go," Piper agreed, reassuring her husband that she was completely healed, "we'll look in the book with Phoebe."

Leo joined Paige, looking a bit puzzled himself by the state Cole was in, but offering a half hearted explanation nevertheless, "looked like a considerable energy ball to me. He'll be better once her rests and gets his energy back."

"Or we could try to heal him together," Paige offered, still conscious of Cole's efforts to protect them despite his demonic heritage, "we did it before."

"No!" Cole refused immediately, "that was before I was to the Wasteland. My powers would hurt you, the electric charge that would go off could kill you."

"Besides," Leo held his own premises, "we heal wounds, not extreme exhaustion caused by energy balls. Let's just take him to the sofa," he put his hand on Cole's shoulder and orbed him over.

"I never seen anything like that monster in the book before, and I've looked through it more than a few times," Phoebe complained, "it's useless," she looked up waiting for the force above that sometimes opened the book at the right page at the right time to help them again.

Since a few seconds had past and nothing happened, Piper concluded, "honey, maybe you should check with the Elde…"

"No need," Cole intercepted, "I can tell you all about him. His name is Marchosias, he is a mighty marquis, belongs to the Order of Dominations. He was one of the main Generals of the Source for over a thousand years. Very powerful demon when he is in the form you have just seen him. He is strong in battle, gives true answers to all questions, and is extremely faithful to the exorcist."

"Huh?" Piper raised her eyebrows, "are you also delirious or something?" she asked, referring to the unintelligible words that came out Cole's mouth.

"No, that's all true," Cole insisted, "although you're right. That is probably not gonna help you in any way. All that happened three thousand years ago and it played great part in the Jews loosing Israel to the Babylonians, " noticing the strange looks everybody cast him he continued differently, "that's what they teach in demon schools anyway…just so you see I'm not delirious, uh, something that is useful for you, yes, there is a potion in the Grimoire that if you throw at him, it commands him to assume human form. Once he is in that form, you can easily kill him, he will have no powers whatsoever."

"And just how is that useful to us?" Phoebe doubted, "we don't use the Grimoire."

"Well, I just happen to remember most of the ingredients, good witches you are, you can probably guess or make up the rest. Give me a pen and paper."

"Did you recently use the Grimoire?" Phoebe insisted, thinking of the ramifications of Cole touching that book.

"There are plenty of exempts hanging about."

"How come he has a human form that makes him so vulnerable?" Paige handed him a writing pad and a felt tip.

"He's half human," Cole started scribbling on the piece of paper.

"So we're vanquishing a half human," Paige stated the obvious.

Cole shrugged, "at least you can see now that I wasn't the worst looking half demon out there by far when I was in the Balthazar form…ready. I think that's correct. Only a couple of ingredients missing."

"One more thing I'd like to know," Phoebe took the piece of paper that Cole held out, "how come you arrived at the right moment? Are you spying on us?"

"I would call it watching over you instead."

"That can't be the potion. It's too easy. What about the missing ingredients?" Phoebe took a look at Cole's scribbles and made out some lines that she read up loud so that everybody could hear it, "ebony bark, saffron, tubeworm. Boil it on an open fire in chicken blood and stir it only with a silver spoon?" Her intonation spoke of incredulity.

"Yes. The werewolf quality of the creature requires silver to defeat it," Cole assured her. I told you there are ingredients missing, but you can make them up. Like something that symbolises evil."

"Blackbird feather cut in six pieces will do?" Paige had shown what a first-class witch she had become.

"Yes. And you'll need something that destabilizes his serpent."

"Will snake poison do?" Piper retorted in her usual direct way.

"And you also just happen to know about this potion?" Phoebe was still distrustful.

"No. I did my homework. There were reports about him escaping from confinement in the Underworld."

"You go down the Underworld," Phoebe stated with a judgemental voice, "the reformed alcoholic's trip to the pub," he shook her head, "we'll do that potion then," she followed her sisters already on their way descending to the kitchen.

"You're welcome," Cole grunted quietly after her and he bent over, embracing himself as if in pain. With Phoebe gone, there was much less reason for pretences, besides, he couldn't take it anymore.

Leo walked over to him and crouched down in front of the sofa, more surprised, than worried. However, from where he was now, he could see the half demon's features creased in an expression that quite clearly spoke of pain, with his eyes closed and his teeth grit together. He was also sopping wet with sweat, "what's wrong?" Leo addressed him sympathetically.

"It hurts," was the weak reply he could make out and that reinforced Leo in taking a caring attitude towards Cole, despite all the questions that stood open regarding his recent behaviour and existence.

"Get some rest," Leo touched Cole's shoulders gently and lightly pushed him down till his head contacted with the decorative pillow at one side of the sofa, "let me get your pulse," the doctor he once was awoken in him. If he couldn't help him as a white lighter, he had to try another way.

Shutting his eyes again, Cole nodded and tried to relax. He didn't protest no matter what Leo was doing to him, strengthening the white lighter's assumptions that he was feeling poorer than he let on. Although Leo wasn't sure of demon anatomy, he could almost undoubtedly deduce that Cole's fast weak pulse and accelerated respiratory rate was far from normal. He could see no real sign of any wounds on him, which under the circumstances, wasn't likely to be a good thing. On the other hand, he could feel the stomach muscles become rigid under his fingers, "these seem like cramps to me," Leo was confused, "this isn't right."

Cole got himself together to verbalize and came out with, "it doesn't matter. I know how to handle this."

"This being what?"

"Are you certain you wanna understand?"

"Hell! Yes. You look unwell. Sooner or later that's gonna affect the sisters and that means me."

"Well…I know this feeling from when I was a child. No time after that was I hit in the stomach by a fireball more powerful than mines cause I was stronger than most demons I know. It will pass, just have to wait it out."

"Anything I can do?"

"Well…they used to hand me anti-spasmodic drugs. They make it easier," Cole rubbed his belly feeling worse than he had before.

"Wait. I have an idea," Leo orbed out, but came back a few seconds later with a towel dipped into hot water and a bucket and put the towel on Cole's tummy, "might help as well," he tried and orbed out again. This time he stayed away for a longer time and arrived back with a needle, "muscle relaxant," he explained.

Cole looked at him strangely, "where do have that from? You not stealing?"

"You know me. Not your everyday white lighter," Leo administered the medication and sat down by the sofa to keep an eye on his companion.


	2. Judgement Day

Chapter 2: Judgement Day

"Do you know of anything we could use instead of tubeworm?" Paige asked as the sisters concentrated on putting a potion together quickly in the eventuality Marchosias or whatever his name was would be back, "cause we don't have tubeworm."

"I don't think it's substitutable," Phoebe answered, "but we can't send you away for it, cause we might need the power of three."

"Leo!" Piper found the answer to their questions and shouted upstairs.

Leo materialised at the other side of the large table, "are you ready guys?"

"We're nowhere near ready. We need you to go to Hawaii or somewhere, honey."

"What?"

"We're missing tubeworm. I haven't seen it in the shops for a while, so get the original. Tubeworms live over a mile deep on the Pacific Ocean floor near hydrothermal vents. They look like lipstick. Hurry."

"For Goodness' Sake's Piper. It's wet and dark. And cold. How am I gonna find it?"

"I'm sure you'll think of something," Piper opened the cabinet under the sink and handed him the flashlight.

"Until I'm back take care and…you think you could make a healing potion for Cole?"

"Demon healing potion?" Paige asked amazed, "you must be kidding. I might be taking this whole witch idea wrong, but where do we get that? I never remember seeing anything like that in the Book of Shadows or anywhere else."

"Wonder why," Phoebe added.

"Of course I know there will be nothing like that in the Book of Shadows," the white lighter established, "but there might be a spell against injuries caused by energy balls."

"Why would there be? Not many would survive an energy ball and if they did, they had a white lighter to heal them," Phoebe thought out loud, "but if you are so adamant, why didn't you ask Cole about the ingredients of that potion as well."

"He didn't tell me anything like that when I asked if I could help. But we need to do something."

"Leo's right," Piper agreed with her husband, "we might need Cole fighting this thing till we're ready. Phoebe, I dislike using him just as much as you do, but he might be our best option in case we haven't got this other potion ready."

"Speaking of, we should continue with the herb cutting," Paige reminded them, "especially that there is nothing that we can do for Cole just now. Leo! Worm!"

"Are we sure summoning Marchosias is our best option?" Phoebe asked as they all gathered together up in the attic an hour later.

"If you don't do it now, he might free his old army officers from captivity as well and then you're pretty much stuffed," Cole said from the sofa where he was now sitting up.

"We already heard your arguments," Phoebe told him firmly, "I was asking my sisters."

"If the potion doesn't work, this time we are prepared with a dozen of others we could use on him," Piper gave her authorisation for the procedure.

Paige nodded and tightened her lips together in agreement. She held out a paper in front of them and they started chanting, "in the darkness of this hour  
I call upon the ancient general's power.  
Bring back our present enemy,  
So that we can vanquish him."

Everything else happened in a flash. Marchosias appeared in a flash ready to blow fire at them. Everybody ducked away from the flames as Paige orbed the potion at him at the same time. The large and strange wolf was writhing in pain, its wings flapping rowdily. Its claws were shrinking into hands, his body twisted and contorted by the wracking pain, are all very visceral. It screamed in agony as its entire body was turned inside out. The end result seen a very different creature. Human he was, but you can hardly make that out. He was wearing moccasins made from fur and his body was covered with a presumably army uniform made from animal skin. On his head, a helmet made from skin as well, with horns made from bone. The parts of him that weren't covered with clothing, were plastered with all kinds of pearls and tattoos. He held a sword in one hand, a shield in the other. He growled and charged forward, but before he could reach anybody, Cole released a fireball at him. The ancient demon lifted up his battle shield, but the wooden armour that was held together by weeds was no use against Cole's moderate strength fireball and the warrior was vanquished at the spot.

"What was that?" Phoebe attacked her ex again, "you killed him before we could ask any questions! What is the secret now?"

Cole looked at them, fed up with explanations. And because he could now, he shimmered out without saying anything at all.

Piper, Leo and Phoebe were sitting chatting over the dinner table the next afternoon. The table was set, food was already served, but not everybody finished their soups yet, so Paige wasn't that late when she orbed into the hall, and dashed into the dinning room.

"Hi, sweetie," Piper smiled warmly, "hungry?"

"I had a full-size lunch at court. Long lunch break," her sister explained. Although she had given up being a social worker for being a full time witch, she was sure by now that she caught up with her sisters learning the magic business, so she went back to her old job and today she was supporting her client in court in a sexual assault case.

"Come on," her older sister urged her, "it's not often nowadays that we can all sit down for dinner together with busy star advice columnist Phoebe and I don't have to run out and leave you because of morning or afternoon sickness of whatever it is."

Paige shrugged and walked over, taking her place at the table, which Piper thought of as a cause for pouring some of her popular home made lentil soup for her younger sister.

"I thought you said it will be a long day at court," Phoebe remembered what she heard from her that morning.

"It would've been," Paige sighed, "but the judge ordered for the case to be postponed because he was afraid prosecution will faint or be sick over the stenographer's head," following the funny looks she got, she added, "his words, not mine's."

"Wait a minute," Piper realised, "prosecution as in Jackman, Carter and Kline? You work with them nowadays don't you?"

"Prosecution as in Cole," Leo summarised the obvious.

"Wait, it gets worse," Paige went though in her head about what happened, "the judge asked if there was a Paige Matthews around and when I stood up ready to act as a witness or whatever he wanted me to do, but then he says: are you Mr. Turner's sister in law? Ex sister in law, I say. Then he told me to take Mr. Turner home before he'll faint or is sick over the stenographer's head and assure he won't go back wasting the judge's time before he is able to stand for more than two minutes at a time …so I did. I orbed him home and put him to bed."

"Maybe I should get over there," Leo offered, "I'm worried about him."

"I sorta said to him that I will orb over tomorrow morning to see if he's ready for court and orb him to make it easier for him," Paige admitted.

"I don't understand you guys," Phoebe declared, "what does Cole concern you? He killed a man just recently! It was malicious criminal, right enough, but a human being!"

"I was kinda ordered to do so by jurisdiction," Paige defended herself, "Judge Log is not one you mess about with. Besides, that doesn't mean as if I would have said to you to go out with him. It isn't like that at all. When is it I would say such a thing? I mean ever."

"Don't forget that Cole is one of the most powerful demons that currently live. He could be accepted as the leader of the underworld any time," their white lighter theorised.

"Really?" Phoebe ironised, "tell me something new."

"All I'm saying is that you don't want to make him your enemy," Leo reasoned with her.

"Most powerful huh?" Phoebe questioned, "then why is he needing our help?"

"That would be an interesting question worth investigating," Leo offered.

"Whatever," Phoebe stood up. She wasn't sure how she'd react if she really thought about the situation, but that wasn't going to happen for her own protection. Keen on remaining impartial and leaving her heart out of it, she knew that the only way she could do that was to physically stay away, "I'll be upstairs if you need me."

"Help!" Phoebe heard Paige's voice from downstairs in the morning as she was combing her hair. That usually meant there were demons on the loose and she required immediate assistance of the power of three or at least their individual powers to help defeat whatever demon attacked. She ran down the stairs to find that Piper and Leo had already orbed down and the white lighter was helping Paige lie Cole down on one of the sofas. The demon immediately curved up in a ball on the settee, holding his stomach and moaning quietly.

"I didn't know what to do with him. I found him on the bathroom floor out cold, you don't wanna know in what," Paige explained.

Leo nodded, took the demon's pulse again and touched his clammy forehead, "I haven't got many ideas," he concluded, "other than going down the underworld and finding a demon doctor for him."

"Not necessary," Cole grunted, "I told you it will go away in a few days. Demon doctors are…well, I don't have a good history with them. Just orb me back home please," he sounded more coherent and lucid now than when Paige first saw him that morning..

"No," Leo shook his head, "you must be vulnerable this way just now…the medication that I gave you last time seemed to have temporarily helped, right? I'll get some more. Piper, could you get some compresses for his stomach?" He orbed out.

"Well, I gotta go," Paige stood up, "gotta let the Judge and my work know of the developments," she also orbed out.

Piper and Leo arrived back into the room at the same time and Piper handed her husband the pot of water, "that's it. I'm expecting a big delivery at the club," she kissed Leo good bye and took her coat while the white lighter administered the drugs he just arrived with.

"Wait, I'll orb you," he offered, "but then I must be up for report," he was referring to the Elders.

"What?" Phoebe reacted to everybody disappearing around her, "you must be kidding! I'm not sick sitting! Besides anything else, I have an article to write."

"So what?" Piper hang on to her husband's arm, "you can write that at home."

"Just make sure you change the compresses every ten minutes or so," Leo orbed out before Phoebe could protest any more.

"Great! That's just great!" Phoebe swore. She wanted to further express her disappointment with some cursing, but the look in Cole's eyes as he turned his face towards her stopped her. There was no need to unnecessarily hurt him any more.

Yet, he was already well aware of her continuous pushing away and he offered, "write you article in peace upstairs. Just put that pot of water closer. I'll…let you know if I need anything."

"Thanks," Phoebe took the opportunity to spend as little time with her ex as possible.

A few minutes into opening her laptop and starting to type, the external world has chased to exist for her and she only looked up when she heard footsteps coming towards her door.

Cole leaned on the doorframe, but he seemed to be in control of his movements, not looking nearly as pale as when Paige arrived with him, "how is your article going?"

"Very well actually," Phoebe took her reading glasses off, "how are you?"

"Those drugs Leo gives me work like a miracle," he let go of the doorframe, "tell Paige I'll be there in court tomorrow, I'm sure. I remember from the past that when I get my strength back so definitely and suddenly as I just did, it is over," he shimmered out, himself limiting the contact he had with the love of his life. Feeling her rejection when they were standing eye to eye hurt him more than anything physical ever could.

"We all know demonic activity has doubled itself in the last week, if not trebled," Leo tried to convince his charges about the truth in what he had heard from the Elders, "it won't be enough to just deal with what comes our way, we need to go out on demon hunts every day."

"But they have no idea what caused the increase in demonic activity?" Piper asked. She was never sure of the Elder's competence.

"No, they have an idea in fact. They think that Marchosias did have time to awaken some of his old army generals. That makes sense if you consider how powerful all the demons have been that we have dealt with in the last few days. I have information on all his former generals, we can't know which ones have been awoken, so we have to make potions against all of them and learn about how to recognise each one."


	3. A Good Day's Hunt

Chapter 3: A Good Day's Hunt

Day three of their new permanent demon extermination crusade saw them in the car park of an empty office building downtown. The tracking spell that they developed when they learnt about the common characteristics of the Source's generals that existed three thousand years ago had picked up another group of demons and Daryl has also told them that policemen reported mysterious goings on in the area.

The sisters, armed with various potions that they were quite sure would work on all the ancient generals, arrived with their own car, as it wasn't advisable to just orb into unknown situations. The car park seemed deserted, but they stepped out anyway to take a look. Traces of some voices reached their ears and they tried to guess the direction it was coming from sneaking around a huge pillar to find half a dozen demons already in the middle of a fight with Cole. They hadn't seen him for a week, apart from Paige in court where he managed to get the judge convinced no problem to convict the sexual assaulter, the maximum penalty possible. They have briefly covered the subject of the generals during a court room break when he let her know that he was hunting them down as well, but so far they haven't crossed paths. They saw as he smartly released several little fire balls at the same time, sending them skilfully in the different directions of the other demons, hurting most of them without miss, while rolling, spinning and jumping out of the way of the fireballs that the other demons released on him. He seemed to be in control, dancing as if he was performing a kumite exercise.

Nonetheless, Piper gave her sisters the sign to attack, successfully blowing up the closest demon to her and getting their attention. Not one of the last generals they had to track down, then.

Paige concentrated on deflecting the fire balls that were thrown in their direction, hoping she could show the same skill as Cole did.

Piper tried her explosive powers again and managed to blow up one more demon. As it was no use on the others, she started to throw the potions on them while her sisters covered her.

Not completely relying on fire balls, two of the demons launched in Phoebe's direction. She jumped back, avoiding them, then flipped herself up in the air, confusing them enough for her to be able to drop one of the potion vials on one of her attackers from above. She turned over in the air and landed lightly on the ground, "if you insist," she ran towards her other attacker and they exchanged a quick set of blows before separating briefly to begin again. She took a quick glance around and saw her sisters individually engaging the remaining other two demons. Cole was bending down, leaning on the wall with one hand, holding his stomach with the other while emptying its contents. She turned around, energetically levitating up to kick her opponent's neck. The scaly, ugly demon fell on the ground, giving her just that millisecond more of a break from its fireballs that she could throw the potion on him. It was even quicker when she leaped through the air and caught Cole's head before it hit the ground as he fell unconscious.

"What's wrong with him?" Phoebe asked Leo for the twelfths time in the last hour since they took Cole back to the manor. Her ex husband had only regained consciousness for mere seconds at a time, his stomach convulsing incessantly even after there was nothing else left in it. All Leo's efforts to ameliorate his condition have failed. He also tried healing him, but he immediately got blasted across the room so much it took him a few minutes to heal himself.

"I'm sorry Phoebe, I have no idea," the white lighter answered.

"All right, you stay with him, we're going down to get a demon doctor," Phoebe's position was quite far from how she reacted the last time somebody suggested that. But then, Cole only seemed to be slightly injured, now Leo feared that if his heart rate and blood pressure was similar to what humans had, he could die. She wouldn't let that happen again. She owed him that much, since she was the one that killed him the last time. It reminded her of that moment a couple of years back when they were standing in front of the mausoleum and a bounty hunter attacked him and she had to choose if she was going to protect him or not. Wasn't a hard decision, she made it on the spur of the moment, rushing to his aid. Once he was conscious, she was planning on acting the non concerned again to propel him away. Acting like that also helped her fool her own mind she didn't care, so much she sometimes really felt like she didn't. But now it was time to urge Paige to use her powers for his sake.

"No," Leo was disagreeing, "Paige doesn't know how to find her way around down there. I've been down with Cole several times and kinda got the tour of the place. Besides, if we get hold of the demon I'm thinking of, you don't need the power of three. He's lower level. You don't actually want to vanquish him anyway. At least not yet. Paige, you should stay," he advised them.

Leo landed the two sisters on the floor of a small cave room, with the whole available space on the wall plastered with shelves full of weird coloured potions.

The demon doctor was leaning over a table, tending to a patient, the only one around, that looked in a pretty bad shape, with his limbs all torn. The doctor looked up when he sensed somebody materialising in his quarters, not particularly alarmed. People were always arriving in the underworld, after all. Especially at his place. Then he saw the remaining sparkles of Leo's orbing.

"We need your help," Leo started the peaceful way first.

"Why should I? You don't matter to me!" The demon yelled with hatred.

"Enough said," Piper decided to blow his patient up.

"Are you coming or not?" Leo stepped closer, lifted the doctor's bag and threw it to Phoebe and they all orbed back to the manor.

"Do something, but we're watching you," Piper showed the demon to Cole's bed.

"At first we thought he is not well because of the fireball he received," Leo explained, hoping it would make the diagnosis easier.

The demon doctor paused for a few seconds, then his hands started pressing and poking all over Cole's body, feeling here, checking over there, "I need to test his blood," he made it clear just in case the witches started to attack him when he proceeded. He took a small old looking grey box with inscriptions on it out of his bag, cut one of Cole's thumbs and let some of his blood flow into the box, shook it violently, then opened it and looked in. Next, he took a needle syringe out of his suitcase, filled it with some clear liquid and injected it into Cole's stomach.

His patient moaned, but opened his eyes in a few seconds time. As recognition settled in, his hand shot up and grabbed the demon doctor by the throat.

"Balthazar," the demon doctor choked, giving away some sort of connection they must have had in the past, "how about some proper payment once in a lifetime?"

"Cole!" Phoebe stepped in, taking a hold of his hand, remembering the exact sequence of how he tried to strangulate her just a few weeks back. And a couple of times way before that. It was one of his favourite techniques of killing.

However, this time, Cole reacted to her shouting, his eyes focused on her and let his hand being slowly pulled away from the demons throat, "we still need him Cole," she explained, not missing the fact that the moment she let go of his hands, they went down to his belly, clasping them in a similar fashion that he had before, "talk," she ordered the demon doctor.

"His blood tells me he's loosing his powers. It makes sense. Some sort of disturbance, such as receiving powerful fire balls can set off demons loosing their unnatural, not inborn powers. Powers they pick up in some way, spells, transfer, exchange…"

"Powers he picked up in the Wasteland," Leo understood, "so you're saying at the end of this he will have the powers he was born with?"

"Yes."

"Can you help him?"

"I can't stop the process if that's what you mean. But I can give you something to massage his stomach with when he's having cramps. It depends on how many and how compelling the powers were he's picked up, but it will take a while. If it goes right."

"What do you mean if?" Phoebe picked up on the word right away.

"It happens sometimes that they can't stabilise completely until they get some blood from a close relative. Just have to wait and see."

Phoebe looked at Cole, "any ideas?"

"I don't know where they are and even if I did, they wouldn't come willingly."

Phoebe didn't expect anything else.

"So don't blame me when he gets worse again. Because he will," the demon doctor defended himself, "I gave him Frestead to ease the pain, but only one shot is allowed per day. Otherwise it'll make him more ill, not less."

"All right, all right," Piper had enough of the filthy demon doctor again, "we spared your life because we might still need you. Not shimmer out of here!"

"I can't shimmer. Could one of you take me back?"

"You can't shimmer?" Paige wondered.

"He can't," Cole confirmed, "he doesn't have any active powers. The yard keep him alive because he's very good with drugs."

"Uh, orb him out already," Piper directed her husband just as disgusted of the smelly demon as he was of her.

Cole woke up in Phoebe's room. The blinds were drawn, so he couldn't tell what time of the day it was. Tubes were attached to his arm, he could see some fluid dripping into it. The covers were drawn over him and he felt a familiar wetness on his tummy, the compresses. They did really help him a bit and right now the cramps felt more of a memory than an actual happening. He attempted a change of position to try that theory out, pressing his palms on the bed and propelling himself higher on the pillow.

His movement alerted Piper, who was sitting on the boudoir chair, reading a baby care book. She was by his side in a trice and helped him slide back on the head rest, "easy, easy. What is it? Do you want something?"

Cole peeked towards the table with a kettle on it and licked his dry lips, "I'm thirsty."

"Of course," Piper poured him some water and handed him a glass.

Cole took it, but his hand started shaking before he could reach his hand and he half placed, half dropped the glass down on his chest.

Piper came to his assistance again without uttering one word, lifting the glass and tilting it back so he could drink some. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable. "How are you?" She placed the glass back down the table.

Cole looked at his arm, indicating the needle that was stuck into it, "you tell me."

"You've been out for three days. Leo thought that the pain would be too unbearable for you if you were aware of it, so he tranquillised you. And you were dehydrated, so…Phoebe has been here with you day and night for the whole time. It just happens I sent her to my room to sleep. Something about she couldn't have anything more than a short kip here if she heard you moaning all the time in your sleep." As Cole underlined that with another grunt, she asked, "can I help you?"

"Maybe that cream rub that was meant to relax my stomach muscles?" Cole already shut his eyes, oblivious to anything else but the throbbing in his guts.

Piper decided upon touching her ex brother in law's stomach that it was best just to call for Leo again.

A warm morning breeze blew in and sunlight spilled into the room as Cole found the curtains drawn back the next morning. He turned to his side, away from the light to tried to get back to sleep and away from the reality that hasn't been very kind to him lately, but when he turned, he found a dishevelled Phoebe lying next to him, fast asleep, her hands still holding his compress and making a wet patch on the bed sheet. The unexpected and pleasant site made his lips curve into a smile. It felt good. In fact, he felt good, he suddenly realized. No cramps, no sickness, no extreme weakness. He turned around in the bed without any problems at all. Not a big achievement, but it will do just now. It allowed him to enjoy the moment. The very long moment he yearned for since he came back from the wasteland. Ok, it was a pretence, an illusion, Phoebe lying next to him just now didn't mean anything really for their future, but he wanted to take pleasure in every moment he could get. He didn't want to get his hopes high, he usually got disappointed when he did, especially if it was about his witch. Nevertheless, hope flickered in him whether he wanted it or not. The long moment stretched and stretched since it took Phoebe about an hour to start to stir. When her eyes fluttered open he greeted her with a "good morning."

"Good morning," she answered, genuinely happy for a few seconds to see him awake, feeling better and looking into his eyes. Until she remembered this was the wrong way to go about it.

"What time is it?" She asked him before she realised the daftness of the question. Cole wasn't likely to know what day it was, let alone the time. Besides, her clock was standing on the bedside table behind him. She glanced at it, "I've got to go," knowing she wasn't exactly late from work, but running out into the bathroom and of the house was easier than struggling with her emotions towards Cole when he was looking right into her eyes. It was for the best, for both of them, to have as little contact as possible.


	4. When Push Comes to Shove

Chapter 4: When Push Comes to Shove

"Hi," Phoebe pushed her bedroom door open in the evening, switching on the lights. She was home later than usual, again, purposefully avoiding him. Piper was home all day anyway, she'd come up occasionally to check on him.

"Hi," Cole blinked, his eyes getting used to the sudden brightness in the room.

Phoebe was glad to hear his voice was stronger than even in the same morning. He was sitting, propped up in bed, "I thought you might like some food?" She put a tray down on the bed, "you think you could eat? You need to eat. You lost quite a lot of weight."

"Thank you, that would be nice. What do you have there?"

"Toast. You can have it with butter, jam, or plain. As you wish. And some ginseng tea. It's beneficial for people recuperating, helps rebuild energy and health."

"Thank you," he started taking a few mouthfuls, but stopped before long.

Phoebe sipped her own tea, wondering what she should do about the uncomfortable silence, "you haven't finished your food. You need to eat to get better."

"Why are you in such a hurry to get me all better?" Cole's voice spoke of sarcasm, "you wanna get rid of me, right?"

"Cole…don't ask questions like that."

He closed his eyes, as if in pain. Phoebe wasn't sure if it was her answer that upset him or his tummy. Perhaps both. She studied his features to find the answer. So it happened, that when he opened his, their eyes locked again. Those eyes of his filled with hurting disturbed her as well, so much that she felt the urge to lean towards him and embrace him, with her head resting on his chest, her eyes slightly glossed over as she held him.

Cole held her gently, his lips resting against her head softly, then brushed a kiss against it lightly, wanting to brush one against her lips, but knowing he could not. His stomach did hurt again. He squeezed his eyes shut as they both fell asleep in the solace of each others' arms.

The morning was a repeat of the previous one. Cole didn't notice when Phoebe changed into her night clothes, but he was glad he found her next to him once more when he woke up. The desire to kiss her still kept a strong hold of his heart and he figured he could kiss her while she was asleep. He did it before, without waking her up. He rose up on his elbow, then quickly touched her lips with his own, briefly savouring the taste.

Phoebe rose straight up in a sitting position. Her eyes were blank for a second but then she glared down on him, "what right do you have?" she wiped her lips where he had kissed her, "you have a lot of nerve stealing a kiss in my sleep... you...you…"

"All right, it's more like a sleeping beauty thing than Cinderella, but…" he backed away, leaning back on his pillow and trying to joke his way out the situation.

"Don't make a joke out of this," Phoebe felt the old anger rising in her, "you can't do that. We're divorced, remember? I told you, there's nothing that could change my mind. We can't be together."

"In that case, I have nothing to be here for," Cole rose from the bed with difficulty, flinching and adjusting his balance as he gradually straightened up.

Phoebe didn't help him, even though she realised he would have shimmered out right away if he could, "are you sure…?"

"I'm fine," he cut into her words, shutting her out, "get out so I can get dressed," he ordered her and she complied.

"Are you sure he's ok to leave?" Piper argued with her in the kitchen.

"He says he's fine."

"He still looked and acted so worn-out yesterday. And according to Leo, his blood test shows his powers are not stabilising."

"Do you want me to accuse him of lying?"

"I dunno. He's probably fine."

Cole rubbed his stomach quietly in the bathroom, an expression speaking of pain on his face. He grabbed the sink, trying to steady himself as he started to feel sick. The room spun. He needed to get a grip, so he could leave. Away from the heartache that was so much more powerful than anything else. Maybe if he sat down. But he wouldn't be able to make it to the toilet seat. He waited and waited, hoping it will all just pass, eventually. He lost the sense of time as well, it seemed long him standing there, but he didn't know if it really was, until he heard Phoebe's voice as she was looking for him, "are you in there? Would be nice if you let us know if you just shimmer out," Cole found himself unable to answer. It would've been too much effort, just a tad more than he was already using hanging on, would have made him fall on the cold and hard floor. But he didn't have to, "Piper, help me!" he heard as he already shut his eyes and let the two pairs of women hands hold him up and guide him back to the bed. Then, it was dark.

Leo and Cole were lying in the sitting room, watching some old Charles Bronson film, while Piper and Phoebe discussed that revolting choice of programmes in the kitchen. In the end, they decided they let the guys do whatever they wanted to. At least in this way Phoebe didn't have to spend any time with Cole that evening. Things have not become easier between them in the last couple of days, although Cole's physical condition improved visibly.

"Demon!" They heard Leo shout suddenly and they rushed into the room. Cole didn't move from the sofa, but Leo stood protectively in front of him, eyeing somebody in the other side of the room.

The young looking demon woman was beautiful by any standards, human or demonic. He hair was black like a raven's feathers, her high cheek bones and thrusting breasts making her a vision of exquisiteness for the male eye. Her black almond shaped eyes gave her a sophisticated look against her porcelain skin. She was clad in a silky modern looking dress, her hair arranged in a cute cascade of curls with a pair of flower shaped clasps. Everybody stared at her in wonder and confusion, especially as she strolled round the chair in front of her and sat down facing Cole. She looked up at Phoebe, "well, well, Mrs. Coleridge Benjamin Turner, am I right? Care to make the introductions, my love?" She addressed the demon sitting opposite from her.

Phoebe contemplated for a second how old the demon woman could be. Anything between seventeen and three hundred, she guessed. She could stay looking young for virtually forever. She could never compete with that. Then finally it dawned on her that she didn't have to, "I'm not Mrs. Turner anymore. Who are you?"

"Call me Elisa," she leaned back in the chair.

"And why is it we don't blow you up?" Piper questioned. Sometimes, demons came to the house with different business propositions that they either honoured, but mostly not.

"Uh, Elisabeth…" Cole got himself together, "where have you been?"

"Elisabeth?…right, well, here and there. Mostly in Italy. But you see, my ex husband, Lord Muchikon, you know the oil baron, had suddenly died, so what can a widow do other than come back to the place she was born at?"

"And I'm sure the baron went peacefully," Cole pointed out.

"Fairly peacefully," Elisa narrowed her eyes, "you can't do it very obviously nowadays if you want the money…"

"Very nice of you to drop by and get Cole up to date with your comings and goings, but why is it again we don't vanquish you on the spot?" Phoebe questioned.

"You can't just like that," Cole explained, "she's very powerful and she's my…mother," he added quietly.

"That's not a reason," Phoebe challenged.

"But getting Cole the blood he needs is," Piper reminded them.

"Uhm," Elisa smiled deviously, happy she could confuse the witches, "that's why I'm here. My connections reported you were in trouble."

"Pull the other one, Elisabeth," Cole retorted, "what do you want?"

"First, to understand what is it you like about this witch. Coleridge, how could you?"

"How could you?" Cole asked back, referring to his father.

"I was seventeen. What's your excuse?"

"I don't have one. I don't need an excuse to love. Now, again, what do you want?"

"Son, I have beauty, I have money, I have power. What could I want?"

"You want something," Cole was convinced.

"What have you done with your father's soul?"

"You want his soul?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because it reminds me of a feel…because I want it. I'd keep it safe, away from the underworld."

Cole considered this for a few seconds, "ok. It might really remind you of how you could be. But I want to know where it is all the time."

"Done," they agreed.

"Can I ask you to roll up your sleeve for me please?" Leo wanted to get over with the transfusion and her out of the house as soon as possible.

It was almost eleven at night and Cole was wandering around restlessly in his apartment, back with his old dilemma, now that he was pretty close to healthy again. He promised he would hunt down every demon in the area to prove something to somebody, but he wasn't sure anymore if that will even be enough. When he heard the elevator, he turned around. He knew with immediate certainty exactly who it would be, and cursed to himself. What she comes here torturing him for? He dove through his hall to the elevator as its doors opened, intercepting her even before she could step out the from behind them, "what?" He barked at Phoebe, cornering her, "what are you doing here?"

Bewildered by the gruffness of the attack, the witch was less than coherent, "I…um…I…came to see how you were doing."

"Right. And that because you care. Well, don't bother."

"Some couples that used to be married manage to stay civil with one another."

"I'm civil," Cole stepped away from her, his voice quiet now, "now get out."

"Cole, don't so this. All I can think about all day is the image in my mind of you hunting demons to prove something to me. We both know it's suicide. It almost was. I don't want you to die."

"Unless you can tell me you'll marry me again tomorrow we have nothing to talk about."

"Actually…" Phoebe finally stepped into the apartment. Now she was the one that was cornering Cole when she moved closer as her ex didn't move, committed to not letting her into the apartment any further. Without warning, she moved quickly towards him and kissed him passionately. His lips were so smooth and warm and she liked it so much, it felt so home.

But the kiss only lasted a few seconds as a voice in Cole's head urged him to protect himself, run and push her away. So he grabbed her hand and yanked her back, "don't play with me Phoebe," he sounded more hurt than threatening.

"I'm not. I can't see you hurt. I've seen enough of that recently."

"What do you mean? What's the change of heart?"

"There's not change, I love you and I always did."

"You know what I mean."

"I gave in to our love."

"Aye, for just now. What about tomorrow? What about next year? Please, don't play with my heart," Cole pleaded.

"How's forever sound?"

"I don't believe you."

"Well, you just gotta. If you want me. Come on, I didn't think I had to seduce you all over again," she lifted her chin to look into his eyes, another way of letting him know she was serious. She kissed him again.

His mouth opened more yielding now, the kiss was sweet, gentle and growing much deeper. Before they knew they had their arms around each other and were creasing each other.

Cole was the first the wake up the next morning again. This time, the moment didn't last long, but it was even more like heaven than previously.

Phoebe opened her eyes as well when she sensed Cole moving. She smiled in her sleep and she smiled when she saw him, herself initiating the first fleeting kiss of the day. She nestled herself into her love, "thanks."

Cole looked down at her, a bit confused, "for what?"

"For being so forgiving. You know sometimes when we protect ourselves we look like a bitch?"

"You can do that well," Cole smiled merrily, now when that part of their lives was behind them. He couldn't describe in words how elated he was that things with him and Phoebe had finally turned out this way, "but you're welcome, " he said, and kissed her again. It was magic.

The End.


End file.
